Material developments

As materials and techniques in dentistry have become ever more sophisticated, the sense of responsibility the industry holds for its patients has arguably evolved too. Modern developments are subjected to far more extensive testing and proving than was the case in the past.

Although time consuming, this has many benefits. As well as achieving its chief goal of enhancing patient wellbeing, such thorough testing also means that dental practitioners have far more data than ever before. They are able to compare and contrast a myriad of products and procedures, and thus employ them in the most appropriate way in their general practice. The wide availability of research documents online makes this even easier.

Composite filling materials provide an excellent example of the point. When composite resins were introduced in the 1980s they were met not with a blind acceptance, but with cautious requests for more information and more extensive research, as practitioners speculated about the clinical performance of the products.